Surgery: light – thermal – and electrical application – Light – thermal – and electrical application – Light application
Patent
1997-06-23
2000-04-25
O'Connor, Cary
Surgery: light, thermal, and electrical application
Light, thermal, and electrical application
Light application
600 27, A61N 506
Patent
active
060539364
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Fields of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable illumination device for modifying circadian rhythms, and more particularly to such a device which is worn by a subject to direct the light for stimulating the eyes of the subject to the person's eyes to modify biological rhythms and enhance wakefulness.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A bright lighting therapy has been known for treatment of disorders of biological rhythm, i.e. an internal biological clock as well as of sleep and wakefulness cycles. The bright lighting therapy is found effective to treat morbid disorders such as seasonal affective disorders (SAD), endogenous depressions, sleep/wake rhythm disorders, and biological disorders accompanying abnormal behaviors frequently seen in mentally handicapped persons, as well as non-morbid disorders such as jet lag and tiredness associated with shift work.
The bright lighting therapy utilizes a high intensity artificial light source to stimulate the eyes of a subject at a suitable timing for a selected time period in accordance with symptoms of the subject. Due to the requirement of the high intensity light, a device realizing the therapy is normally expected to be bulky and is not suitable for treatment of unserious disorders without disturbing daily activities of the subject. To this end, WO/89/08475, WO/89/08476, and WO/94/09851 propose a portable light illumination device for stimulating neuroendocrine system which is designed to be carried on a subject's body and delivers a high intensity light to eyes of the subject, while permitting the subject to proceed with daily activities during the treatment. However, since this portable device relies on a point or line source of light to produce the high intensity light and the light source is mounted on the bill of a visor to deliver the light directly or indirectly to the subject's eyes, the high intensity light source itself or virtual image thereof will remains in the field of view of the subject to greatly dazzle the subject. With this result, the subject has to narrow one's eye to receive only a reduced amount of light and therefore eventually fail to have effective treatment.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
The present invention has been accomplished in view of the above problem to provide an improved portable light treatment device capable of delivering the illumination which is sufficient in amount but mild to the subject's eyes for assuring effective light treatment without annoying the subject. The portable illumination device in accordance with the present invention comprises a surface illuminating unit having an effective surface region of at least 15 cm.sup.2 which emits a visible diffused light of reduced luminance variation. The light is selected to give an illuminance of at least 2000 LUX measured at an eye position of the subject. A mount member is provided to mount the surface illuminating unit to a portion adjacent to eyes of the subject to direct the diffused light to the eyes of the subject. Thus arranged portable illumination device has an advantage of delivering sufficient amount of the light to the subject's eyes without dazzling the subject and therefore administering effective treatment without imposing severe restrictions to the subject's daily activities.
Through experiments, it is found effective that the surface illuminating unit gives off the diffused light of which average luminance is elected to be from 1,000 to 4,000 cd/m.sup.2 and of which maximum luminance is less than 6,000 cd/m.sup.2 in order to minimize the dazzling effect.
Further, it is also found effective that the ratio of a maximum to minimum luminance appearing in the effective surface region is less than 2.5 and difference in luminance between any two points spaced by 2 mm is less than 100 cd/m.sup.2 in order to minimize the dazzling effect.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the surface illuminating unit comprises a light conductive element formed with a light inlet for receiving a light from a separate
REFERENCES:
patent: 5304212 (1994-04-01), Czeisler et al.
patent: 5447527 (1995-09-01), Waldman
patent: 5447528 (1995-09-01), Gerardo
patent: 5562719 (1996-10-01), Lopez-Claros
Hagihara Hiroshi
Koyama Emi
Matsubara Hozumi
Michimori Akihiro
Nakano Toshio
Carter Ryan
Kintner Arent Fox
Matsushita Electric & Works Ltd.
O'Connor Cary
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